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34 News: Periodic Rep. Members Sec. Pub. Util. Comm. & Transp. L. A.B.A. 1 (1994-1995)

handle is hein.journals/infrastr34 and id is 1 raw text is: AB SETO OF PU LI UTLIY CO M NIN AN TRANSP RTATIO A Periodxc R. Members of of Pubhc LUn Cornmunimca Transporiaii AmTerican Bar Association Headlines Electric Utilities Merge, Act Like Telcos, Regulators Ignore Culture Shock. U Entergy's Up, CINergy's Down. On December 15,1993, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the proiposed merger of Entergy Services, Inc., and Gulf States Utilities, Co., but only after agreeing to the so- called Louisiana Tracker - an adjustment clause first proposed by the Louisiana Public Service Commission to monitor the winners and losers in economy trades among the various Entergy operating subsidiaries, and true up ac- nts in ten years. The parties then signed their final merger ,,,eement late on New Years' eve. But on January 12, the FERC withdrew its approval already granted back in August for the CINergy merger, which would combine PSI Energy, Inc., and Cincinnati Gas & Electric Co. (CGj&E). The FERC cited uncertainty about whether the merger would undergo state review. 0 Electro-Cormnunications. In January, Pacific Gas and Electric Co., Tele-Communications Inc. (TCI), and Mi- crosoft Corp. announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding to work together on a telecommunications project to deliver real-time energy pricing information to electric utility customers via cable television lines. Elsewhere Congressman Rick Boucher (D., Va.) announced plans re- cently to introduce legislation to amend the Public Utility Holding Company Act to allow electric utilities regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission to compete in the cable television and telephone markets. 0 Culture Shock. In a natural gas rate order issued last October, the Michigan Public Service Commission disal- lowed $2.5 million in costs spent by Michigan Consolidated Gas Co. in an effort to shift corporate culture and gear-up for competition through an employee training project called Power of You - .uild the Future, designed to alter the way workers view their jobs through team building, leader- :% training, and personal development. Also in the same .', the commission rejected a company proposal to adjust capital structure and so boost equity return to overcome an - alleged stigma against the city of Detroit in financial mar- kets. Regulation Under the Clinton Administration A Report from the Section's Industry and Practice Committees Bill Clinton believes we need a new National Energy Policy that lets Americans control America's energy future. Instead of coddling special interests whose fortunes depend upon America's addiction to foreign oil, Clinton's National Energy Policy promotes national security, energy diversity, economic prosperity, and environmental protection. - from Bill Clinton on National Energy Policy, a five- page position paper issued by the Bill Clinton for President Committee during the 1992 campaign. In this issue, we present excerpts from reports on issues facing the Clinton Administration, issued by the various industry and legal practice committees of the Section of Public Utility, Communications, and Transportation Law. The committee reports examine personnel apppointments, policy announcemen~ts, and political changes within the Clinton Administration- and what these changes hold for the nation's regulated industries. The complete set of reports covers a full range of issues - from electric utility restructuring to airline competition, from cable television to telephone deregulation, from antitrust enforcement to environmental policy - and is available to Section Members and others interested in law and regulation. For more information, please contact Mary E. Sears, American Bar Association, 750 North Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60611. Tel. 312-988-5602. M The Chairman's Statement A welcome to Section Members old and new from Section Chair Steve C. Griffith, Jr. 34. NO. I EARLY SPRING 1994